TRIGGER WARNING!
This website contains poetry and true stories about trauma, personality disorders, suicidal thoughts, self-harming, depression and other significant mental health issues, as well as personal stories of emotional neglect and physical and sexual abuse, which some people might find disturbing.
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Poetry for Mental Health
Supporting people with mental health challenges by motivating and inspiring them to write poetry.
"Poetry for Mental Health has supported thousands of people around the world through words and poetry!"
ROBIN BARRATT - Founder POETRY FOR MENTAL HEALTH
I formed
Poetry for Mental Health at the outbreak of COVID, as a way of helping people cope mentally through lockdown and the pandemic by inspiring them to write poetry. Five years, seven books, hundreds of poets, and thousands of pieces of poetry later,
Poetry for Mental Health
is still inspiring people to write poetry for positive mental health! And with around 1600 visitors each and every month, it
is now probably the largest and most visited website of its kind on the net!"
~
"No matter what your age, background and experience, culture or identity; whether an established writer with many published titles to your credit, or an aspiring poet who has never written a word of poetry in your life, our philosophy here is to embrace, welcome and support everyone, everywhere suffering from mental health challenges, and help you cope through words and poetry ... Get writing!"
NEW - This Week's Featured Poetry (x3)
Week commencing Monday 08th December, 2025
OVERTURE
By Ted Halm
Tossing and turning in my dreams,
I slept for seven years on the sofa,
finding some solace in the soft cushions.
I’m slowly getting better at sleep;
somnambulant in my new bed.
Is it You?
Perhaps I wasn’t the person you were looking for.
It does take a long time to actually know me.
I’m still trying to find myself
and who I am.
You were someone who wanted to enjoy the finer things in life;
forcing all your longings to the surface,
throwing aside emptiness and sadness,
and seeking serenity in the madness.
And knowing this must end, no matter how deep the seduction.
Why are you wanting to change ourselves,
I once asked when we were together.
I had the answers;
I wish I had had more time.
I must transcend from the ground up
and get-a-way, now and then;
break free from the smirks of strangers
while wandering through crowds, seeing your face.
Accept things as they are,
let go if I can’t control,
discover inner peace by the wayside.
Because, after all, I am a big person now,
and ready to face the failure I felt, in this,
the hole where I live.
Where I found you defiantly in the corner of the cellar,
and the note you wrote that was torn from your heart,
falling to the floor just a few inches below
the dangling and stretching of your skeletal feet.
ABOUT THE PIECE: "The poem is a lament by a suicide survivor mourning the death of the one he loved."
ABOUT TED: Ted is an author of short fiction who has retired to write full-time from his home in rural Michigan. He had a 40-year career in university relations as a writer, broadcaster, and webmaster in Big Rapids, Michigan, winning 10 national awards for his publications. His writings examine characters searching for their identities and a brighter path, while coping with depression, despair and loneliness.
I'M JUST HURTING
By Annie Walsh
I am not a drama queen,
Because of how I react,
I have lost too many,
That is just a fact.
So when I start to cry,
And I think the worst,
Don’t tell to calm down,
Listen to me first.
I know life can be cruel,
It can also be so hard,
Just when you’re content,
It catches you off guard.
So each happy moment.
So lightly I do tread,
When I should enjoy it,
I’m full of fear instead.
That is a part of life,
I have often been told,
Each and every moment,
Is worth its weight in gold .
I’m better than I was,
The fear I slowly face,
The blessings that I have,
I’m starting to embrace.
I might not be the same,
Grief does that to you,
But the love around me,
Is what helps me through.
POETRY THERAPY
By Igor Goldkind
Everyone wants to be free.
Even from the things that once gave us comfort.
We are like children constantly swapping our blankets for softer ground.
So why do you wait to be free when the keys to your cage
Are hanging just outside your door?
Reach through the bars with your hands,
Stretch your fingers and bend your will around the bars.
Your mind is your best doctor, best teacher, best friend.
Whether you believe it or not.
In spite of everything you’ve done to yourself,
our mind really does care about you and thinks of you often quite fondly.
Just let your mind repair itself.
Heal itself with a few choice words.
Your own words.
When you say to yourself:
The Truth is not a tombstone,
The truth is not a judgement,
The truth is a living realisation inside your own mind,
Pulling you forwards, enraptured by time.
When my breath and
My will are as one,
the universe swallows me
Whole.
Lots more Featured Poetry ...
On the themes of mental health, from hundreds of poets around the world.
"Why is poetry so very good for people with mental health challenges? Because it helps them see the world in their own way, and in a way that makes sense to them ..."
Robin Barratt
Our Books
GREAT CHRISTMAS GIFTS!
Treat yourself, or someone close, to a copy of one of our acclaimed books this Christmas. They make inspirational gifts, all are five star rated at Amazon, and all profits from sales go back into promoting and publishing poetry for mental health. Click on the link below for further details, contents list, and to order a copy from Amazon websites worldwide. Thank you!
"People can benefit from writing poetry because it can take the images and the talk in your head and transfer it to paper. It’s like getting the words out
of your head so that they don’t linger there."
Nadine Dunseith
Personal Journeys
In their own words, writers and poets write about their own personal journey with mental health.
Interviews
Nine amazing writers and poets about their journey with mental health.
Featured Poets
Featuring almost 80 poets around the world, with up to six pieces of their work, and a little about the author and the stories behind their work.
NEW - Featured Books
Promoting books and publications on the themes of mental health.
Articles
Articles about poetry and positive mental health.
Contribute to Poetry for Mental Health
Would you like to showcase your poetry for mental health here on this website, and/or on our Facebook page? Then consider contributing ...
Writing Poetry for Mental Health Course
Our new online Writing Poetry for Mental Health course will be available again soon!
We are established internationally as one of the leading resources for poetry and mental health and, over the past five years, have supported hundreds people across the world and showcased thousands of pieces of poetry! If you already write poetry, but would like to further develop your skills and style, or have not written a word of poetry in your life, but would like to start, then this course will be perfect for you.
Publishing Services
We publish books for other people too!!!
Would you like to see your poetry collection published as a paperback and Kindle, and available for other people to read around the world? Prices start from just £150.00 for a chapbook / short collection. Click on the link for more info.
Newsletters ...
NEW - Newsletters ONLINE
What's new at Poetry for Mental Health. Our monthly newsletters are now available to read online.
Send us your name and email address and we'll keep you updated with our news and calls for submissions. We'll never send you more than one email a month, or pass your details onto anyone else ... ever!
Other ...
Directory of Support Services
Charities, groups and organisations worldwide offering mental health help and support to people in crisis.
Mental Health First Aid
Identifying warning signs of common mental health crisis, and how to guide a person towards safety and appropriate help. More info ...
“No matter how bad something may seem at that moment in time when you feel all is lost, it can get better if you can only give it more time."
Lynda Tavakoli
NOTE ON CONTRIBUTIONS: We publish mental health poetry from around the world, and for a number contributors to this website, English is not their first language. Unlike some other platforms, we don't heavily edit a poet's own work (if we did, it would then not be their own work!), so please focus on a poet's messages and meanings, and not necessarily on any grammatical mistakes or translated imperfections that may arise within their contribution.
